


Clair de Lune

by Areeta9



Series: Violet: Master of Chaldea [14]
Category: Fate/Grand Order, Fate/stay night & Related Fandoms
Genre: Best Friends, Classical Music, Friendship, Full Moon, Injury, Injury Recovery, Inspired by Music, Music, Piano
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-05
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:54:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,776
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25719916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Areeta9/pseuds/Areeta9
Summary: On the night of the full moon, a young girl sits at a piano serenading the night air. Her only light is the silver satellite outside the window.
Series: Violet: Master of Chaldea [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1589119
Comments: 5
Kudos: 9





	Clair de Lune

**Author's Note:**

> Takes place after the 5th Singularity.
> 
> I highly recommend listening to Claire de Lune by Claude Debussy

“Here’s your food, Senpai,” said Mash as she set a standing tray with warm soup and utensils on Violet’s bed.

Violet put down her portable console and sat up a little straighter in bed. The upper half of the infirmary bed had already been raised using a switch on the side. She moved the stuffed bear that had been keeping her company. It was the latest in her growing menagerie of stuffed animals(She had four so far), another hand-sewn gift from Vlad. She had yet to give it a name.

“Fou.”

Fou, Chaldea’s resident furball hopped onto the bed on her opposite side and nuzzled Violet in greeting.

She tried to get comfortable but winced as her movements pulled at the stitches on her abdomen. Mash moved toward her but Violet held up a bandaged hand to stop her.

“I’m fine. It still hurts, but I’m fine.”

Mash looked over her friend's bandaged form with concern before taking a seat in the chair by her friend’s bed. There were certainly less bandages than when she was first let in to see her injured friend; there was also a lot less blood, but the sight of her friend brought a mixture of guilt and worry, even though she was recovering.

“Do you need me to feed you?” Mash asked.

“No. But thank you,” Violet said as she gingerly spooned some of the soup. 

The wounds that had opened up on the inner sides of her arms had been deep. They had damaged the muscles in her arms and made it hard to move her arms and hands. Even with the healing magic used on her and the only evidence of the damage being two long scars (which Kid Gil had already gifted her a magical salve to erase them for) Violet’s recovering body was still weak. As Violet lifted the spoonful to her mouth, the spoon shook in her hand. It just barely made it to her mouth before her hand dropped to her side. Violet sighed before swallowing the soup, spoon still in mouth.

“Fou…”

“Senpai…”

“I know, I know,” Violet said, muffled by the spoon in her mouth.

Mash pulled the spoon from her mouth and began to feed Violet.

“Mash, I miss solid food,” Violet said between spoonfuls.

“Dr. Romani said no solid foods for at least another week. That blow damaged some of your internal organs and your whole body shut down. You may have been healed by magic but cursed wounds are no joke. We can’t risk losing you, Senpai. _I_ can’t-”

Violet grasped Mash’s hand. Mash fell silent.

Violet brought her other hand to hold Mash’s and squeezed her friend’s hand, looking her in the eye. There wasn’t much strength in them. “It’s okay Mash. I have no intention of relapsing, let alone dying.” Violet let go of her hand. “Besides, after ten days, I’m _sick_ of being in here,” she said, looking around the infirmary. “If I didn’t think it was inevitable, I’d wish to never be in here again!” she exclaimed.

For two of the days she had been in the infirmary, she had been in a medically induced coma. For the following eight, she had been bedridden. Her servants and various staff members visited her daily and Romani had her on 24-hour watch, but being confined to one room everyday was beginning to grate on her.

“I see…” Mash said. 

_‘I’m no stranger to being confined for so long, but I guess people on the outside aren’t used to it’_ Mash thought.

“Mr. Sanson!” Mash called out.

“Yes?” The white-haired man came from the front of the medbay to the intensive care section.

“Can I take Senpai out for a walk after she finishes eating? Let her stretch her legs a bit?”

“Hmm…” Sanson picked up Violet’s latest medical report from a nearby table. After reading a few lines, he looked back to the girls.

Violet had her hands clasped together and was pleading with her eyes. By her side, Fou’s ears were drooping and he was giving him puppy dog eyes. Mash glanced at them before mimicking their actions.

“Okay, but take a servant to carry Master with you and don’t go too far. She’s not strong enough to walk long distances yet.”

“Yes!” Violet exclaimed.

Mash helped her hurriedly finish her soup and go to the bathroom (Nothing builds bonds like helping someone use the bathroom and bathe, and nothing humbles you like _needing_ someone to help you use the bathroom and bathe). 

In minutes, Mash, Fou, and Violet were heading towards the atrium.

Violet tried to keep facing forward and not think about the strong arms carrying her bridal style down Chaldea’s hallways.

“You doing okay, Master?” asked Arash as he kept up with Mash, his master in hand.

“...Yes” Violet managed, keeping her eyes forward and hoping that the blush on her face wasn’t too obvious.

Arash had been the first servant to walk by when Mash went out to look for a servant to go with them. It was fortunate that the archer was kind enough to help them, but Violet couldn’t quite get rid of her embarrassment.

She didn’t like her servants carrying her. She was on the heavier side and though she knew that most of her servants were strong enough to carry her anyway, it made her feel like a burden. However, in her condition she couldn’t exactly refuse.

The group reached the end of the hallway and the passage opened up to a large atrium with enormous windows running from floor to ceiling.

Arash set Violet down and the girl strode towards the large windows. She pressed her hands against the glass and stared out into the never ending blizzard that surrounded the observatory.

“Aw...I forgot we were surrounded by a blizzard. I was hoping to see the night sky,” she said quietly.

“Yeah, it’s too bad,” said Arash, coming to stand beside her.

“Hey Mash, what day is it?”

Mash pulled out her tablet and went to the calendar. “It’s Wednesday, Xxxxx xx. Oh, it would have been a full moon tonight.

“Full moon...Heh!” Violet muffled a laugh.

“What’s so funny, Senpai?” asked Mash.

“It’s just a thought I had.”

“Penny for them?” asked Arash.

Fou climbed onto Violet’s shoulder. She scratched him under the chin. “Well, it’s silly but, I just thought about playing music under the full moon.”

“Really?” asked Mash.

“Yeah, picture the scene. It’s dark, not a single light to be found. You don’t know where you are. Feeling the wall you stumble down the dark hallway. You don’t know where you’re going and your only guidance is the walls surrounding you, until...You hear music. It’s faint, you can barely hear it, but as you move closer, it gets louder, more distinct, and yet it’s clear and calming. You realize that it is the sound of a piano. You follow the music, latching onto it as your hope for answers. Eventually, you see a light at the end of the hallway. You move toward it and come to a large, open room with windows. Beyond them is a brilliant night sky. The stars sparkle like diamonds but the true gem is the full, silver moon, shining its cool light into the room. You blink, eyes getting used to the light, but as you do, you see the source of the beautiful music. Silhouetted by the moonlight is a grand piano, at it sits a beautiful maiden in an elegant silver gown. You gaze upon her, entranced by her music, her fingers dancing across the keys and making the piano sing, until finally...she plays the last note. Slowly, she raises her head, gazes into your eyes, your whole soul feeling exposed before her clear eyes, and she opens her mouth to speak…And then you wake up in your bed”

“Senpai! Don’t just leave us hanging like that!” Mash exclaimed.

Arash let out a hearty chuckle. “I see why the storyteller servants are fond of you, Master! You really had us!” 

Violet smiled. “I try. Anyway, thinking about the full moon made me want to act that out a bit.”

“Well, why don’t you? I know you’re still recovering but you should still be able to play piano right?” asked Arash.

Violet looked down at her hands and bandaged wrists. She clenched and unclenched her hands. The muscles were still tight. She wouldn’t be playing very well any time soon, but it was fortunate that her hands themselves had been left unharmed. She could give it a shot.

“Yeah, I think I will. I already have a piece in mind. Can we go to the library?”

………………..

“So you want to learn Claire de Lune?” Amadeus asked without looking up as he flipped through the sheet music his young master had given to him. 

Violet, Mash, and Arash watched him read the sheet music expectantly.

“Composed by French composer Claude Debussy, the third movement of Suite Bergamasque,” he said, recalling the information he had found in the library. Since coming to Chaldea, he had spent some time looking at the works of the composers that came after him. Claire de Lune was a piece from after his time. It seemed easy enough for his master to learn, some more complicated parts but nothing she couldn’t work through with time. “It would be good practice to smooth out your playing. Have you done 9/8 time a lot?”

“No,” Violet replied.

“We’ll work on it then,” Amadeus said. “Unless…” he looked at Violet’s bandaged arms and then the bandages that peaked beneath her casual dress, binding her torso,.

Violet understood his gaze. “I’m not a hundred percent yet ,but I won’t be like this forever. By the time 28 days have gone by I’ll be beyond good as new. I’m already strong enough to start practicing!”

“Very well. It’s not the most taxing thing you could be trying to do...Why 28 days in particular if I may ask?”

“Playing Clair de Lune under a full moon would be romantic.”

………………..

“Medea, can you teach me how to do a light spell?”

“Not in your condition, no.”

Medea walked around her workshop, collecting dried herbs that were hanging on her bare brick walls and placing them on her work table to be ground with a mortar and pestle.

It was the day after Violet had come up with the idea to learn Clair de Lune. After sleeping on the idea Violet realized that with the neverending blizzard outside, to get the moonlight she wanted, she’d have to use magic.

“Come on Ms. Medea, it's just a simple light spell! Isn’t it easy for you mages?” Arash coaxed. After the previous day, he had decided to chaperone his master and Mash to their next outing as well.

Medea turned from her work and looked at him, eyes narrowed. Violet pierced her lips together. She knew Medea had a strong dislike for pretty boys but she thought that bringing Arash to her workshop would be fine. Now, don’t get her wrong, Violet thought Arash was a good looking fellow, but he came off as more “hunky” than pretty to Violet. 

Medea’s judgment seemed to be similar. Her expression went back to its neutral state before she turned back to her work. 

“Yes it is, for an _average_ mage, but our dear master definitely falls below that standard. On top of that, her body can’t take the strain right now. She hasn’t fully healed from her injuries. In fact,” Medea stared down her student, “You shouldn’t even be outside the infirmary.”

“The doctors gave Senpai permission to walk around for a bit,” Mash interceded. “As long as Senpai has someone to help her around, it’s okay,” she said, gesturing to Arash.

“Okay. Well my word still stands. The only magical studies you’ll be doing is practicing tongue twisters. I hope you haven’t been slacking.”

Violet thought of the list of tongue twisters she had that still needed attending to before moving the thought from the forefront of her mind.

“How about next week then? Or two weeks from now? I should be all healed up by then,” she ventured.

“Hm, correct. I’d be willing to teach you by then, but why a light spell in particular?”  
  


“Because overhead lights just won’t cut it.”

Medea raised an eyebrow.

………………..

“Start with the first section. For now, practice from here to here,” Amadeus said, marking the pages of Violet’s sheet music.

Violet nodded as he sat back in his seat next to the piano and she put her hands on the keys. They were in one Chaldea’s three music rooms. They were a group of three small rooms clustered together in a corner of Chaldea that each held a piano with one of them a drum set. The rooms had been a surprising find, Violet hadn’t even known about them until relatively recently. Amadeus had known about them sooner, but preferred the grand piano in his own room. Presumably they were there for recreational purpose prior to Solomon’s attack on Chaldea.

Amadeus listened intently and watched Violet’s hands as she clumsily made her way through the first part of the piece. She was heavy on the keys and had the tendency to repeat notes as if she was unsure of them, but Amadeus didn’t judge her. It was her first time playing the song, she would get better with practice and he had known for a while that she was no virtuoso. Despite this, he couldn’t begrudge a person who loved music and was willing to learn. She’d likely never become a great composer or performer like himself, but if it made the girl happy to play the piano, he was glad to assist her.

“Don’t forget the A flat. It won’t sound right otherwise. If it’s too much strain, take a break.”

………………..

Five days have passed since Violet's first stint outside the infirmary and today was the day that Violet would get the last of her bandages off. 

Violet sat on the side of the infirmary bed, grinning as a female staff member unwrapped the bandages around her torso. Mash stood on the other side, waiting eagerly with Fou on her shoulder. As the staff member put the bandages aside, she hastily grabbed a sports bra and pulled it over her head to cover her bare breasts.

The staff member examined her torso for a brief moment before calling to the doctor waiting behind the curtain. “It looks good to me!” 

Dr. Romani moved the curtain aside and stepped in to examine Violet. Considering he and three male servants had been the ones treating her since she incurred her injuries, having a female staff member unbandage her and waiting until after she was partially covered was really a formality, but he wasn’t going to argue.

“Stand up please?” Dr. Romani asked.

Violet obeyed and Romani leaned forward to examine her abdomen. He pressed on the dark brown scar on her stomach.

“No pain?”

“No.”

Romani pressed on her side in silent command and Violet turned to show him her back. He pressed his hand against her back.

“No pain.”

“How are your hands?” 

“I can grip without issue now.”

“Have you been able to walk all right?”

“Yes. I’m not getting fatigued as easily and there’s no limp.”

“Whelp,” Romani stood up straight “I hereby discharge you from the infirmary. You’re welcome to go back to your room. You’re still on the liquid diet for two more days so avoid solids. I know the temptation will be hard to fight especially since you're no longer under 24/7 observation but I’ve already informed the kitchen staff that you’re only allowed soup. Take it easy on any form of exercise and magecraft for a bit.” 

Romani patted her head and smiled softly. “Congratulations on your recovery, Violet.”

Violet beamed.

“Congratulations, Senpai!” Mash came around and wrapped her friend in a warm hug. Fou hopped from Mash’s shoulder onto Violet’s ,eagerly licking her face.

Violet returned the hug. “Thank you for all your help, Mash.” She looked up at Romani, “Thanks, Doc.”

“It’s my job. I’m just happy you’ve made a full recovery. Now,” Romani picked up Violet’s stuffed bear and put it in her waiting arms, “grab your stuff and get out of here! You’re probably sick of this place!”

Erupting into fits of giggles, Violet and Mash grabbed Violet’s stuff and left the infirmary, eager to get back to Violet’s room.

………………..

“She’s been playing the same song nonstop for days now.”

Kotaro and Cursed Arm stood against the wall outside of the piano rooms, listening to their master play. This had become a common pastime for the servants since after the 4th singularity. Unless there was a singularity or other issue that came up, their master could reliably be found practicing at that time of day for 45 minutes or so four to five days a week, and they were allowed to listen in...as long as they didn’t let her know that they were there. That had been a mistake Liz had made when she had burst in on her practicing and what had been a nearly perfect playthrough of a song became riddled with sour notes. Alas, their Master’s self-consciousness was not conducive to a productive practice session.

“Lord Magus has been practicing more than usual too,” whispered Cursed Arm. “Is she preparing for a performance?”

“Pst!”

The two assassins turned to the source of the noise. Around the corner was Arash, beckoning to them. The two moved towards him.

“I overheard you guys talking. Master wants to play a serenade under the full moon. That’s why she’s practicing so much. She wants to have the song mastered by the end of the month.”

“Full moon? But the outside is-” Kotaro started.

“She’s working on that, trying to sort it out with Medea. She’s working really hard, so let’s cheer her on ,okay?”

The two nodded.

The music stopped and they could hear the sound of a door opening.

“Oap,” murmured Arash. He went into spirit form.

Hassan and Kotaro concealed their presence.

Violet walked past them with her sheet music in hand. When she rounded the corner down the hall, Arash rematerialized and the assassins came back into view.

“It’s a good thing she can’t detect magic yet,” Arash commented.

………………….

“May I ask why you wanted to do this so late at night?” Amadeus asked as he helped the two girls roll the grand piano and bench into the dark atrium at 1 am.

“Because it fits the mood,” Violet whispered back as she pushed. “You’re an artist, you know the importance of setting.”

Amadeus couldn’t really argue with that.

“Besides, there are less people around at this time. If a bunch of people were around, the mood would be ruined.”

Amadeus decided not to mention the multiple heroic spirits he sensed in the area and the whispers of staff members his keen hearing picked up. He just hoped they kept out of sight and didn’t ruin his master’s creative vision.

The three pushed the grand piano into place in front of the atrium’s large windows. The windows allowed a little light into the room, but not enough to mimic the moonlight Violet desired.

Violet clapped her hands and rubbed them together. “Now…” She closed her eyes and focused hard as she cast her spell. She felt the mana flow out of her as an orb of softly glowing light manifested in front of her. She opened her eyes and directed the orb, shining its pale, silver light, towards the window so that it shined on the piano at an angle. It wasn’t a perfect replica of the moonlight she wanted, but it was close enough.

Her setup complete, she moved toward the piano. She couldn’t waste time. Without her music to aid it, the spell wouldn’t last long.

It was time for Amadeus and Mash to get out of sight. Amadeus guided Mash away from where he knew the staff members were hiding, knowing that her response to seeing them would alert Violet, towards an empty hallway.

Violet sat on the bench before the piano. Her sheet music was before her. She had contemplated trying to play the song without it, but she wanted to minimize the chances of mistakes. She smoothed her dress. It was a silvery magic dancer dress, its back elegantly trailing behind her seat. It was accented by her silver teardrop earrings that sparkled in the light. One of the staff members had helped her straighten her hair so that it fell smoothly down a little past her shoulders. Her feet were bare. This was the best set up she could have asked for.

She placed her hands on the ivory keys and took a deep breath and quietly….she began to play.

As her fingers moved across the keys a quiet melody began to echo within the empty atrium. At first it was a soft whisper, so quiet that its listeners could just barely hear it but gradually the simple notes became louder. The bass walked up the piano, giving the piece a firm foundation, the earth to the treble’s sky, as the treble continued to sparkle like the stars in the night. Violet’s movements were as smooth as a stone plucked from a clear stream as her fingers danced across the keys. 

She lightened her touch on the bass, seemingly drawing the notes away from the earth and back into the infinite night sky as she went along. 

Her touch became lighter and lighter as her serenade drew to a close. Illuminated by her magic moonlight, her playing felt sentimental, as if one was saying goodbye to the lights of night. As lights drew further and further away, so did the song that they had brought with them until there was nothing more but silence.

Violet’s fingers came to a stop on the final note. 

She opened her eyes; she hadn’t realized she had closed them. 

She breathed. She turned her gaze to outside the window. She was feeling....something. Something she hadn’t felt while she was practicing. It was a feeling that she couldn’t quite put words to. An emotion she couldn’t name.

The piece had felt like a full night under a silver moon and sparkling stars, but it had only been five minutes

As she sat, wistfully gazing out into the snowy night, ignorant of her audience, her light faded, no longer fed by the magic of her playing, and she soon sat in darkness.

**Author's Note:**

> God, this really makes me want to play piano


End file.
